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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26237590">Self Discovery</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Petchricor/pseuds/Petchricor'>Petchricor</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Soul Eater</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Internalized Homophobia, Kid is too curious for his own good, M/M, Nightmares, What else is new, don't touch random glowing things, headcanon fic, kid/soul, super slowburn, tags to be added as fic continues, tw: drowning</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 12:08:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>13,270</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26237590</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Petchricor/pseuds/Petchricor</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Kid had never really asked his father where he’d come from. He knew he was a fragment of his soul, but that still begged the question, where had the body come from? It was the day before his fifteenth birthday that he decided it was about time he knew the answer to that question.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Death the Kid/Soul Eater Evans</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>29</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Questions</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>this is based on a personal headcanon of mine, if that's not your thing don't read it</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Kid had never really asked his father where he’d come from. Well, he’d asked once when he was much younger and had gotten the answer that he was made from a fragment of his soul. But that still begged the question, where had the body come from? Death was a god, certainly, but he didn’t have the ability to create organic beings in any way, so where had he gotten a body to put the fragment into?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was the day before his fifteenth birthday that he decided it was about time he knew the answer to that question.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Heyya, Kid!” Death greeted him with a happy bounce. Although he wore a mask and Kid had never seen his face, he’d never had any trouble understanding how he was feeling or reading what little expression his mask gave. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Dad, I have a question,” Kid said, taking a seat in the golden chair Death often provided for him. Death didn’t respond other than to tilt his head slightly, waiting patiently for the question as always. “I know I was made from a fragment of your soul, but where did you get the body to put the soul in? You’ve always said I’m half human, after all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Death was silent a moment before sighing, sagging slightly. He clearly knew this day was coming. “I’ll tell you, but the answer may not please you. It may even send you down a rabbit hole.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kid scowled, nodded. “I’m prepared for that. Now please, tell me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Very well. You were a given to me as a gift, from Life.” Kid’s eyebrows went up. “Fifteen years ago, Life showed up in this very room holding you as an infant. She had taken a piece of my soul and put it into a stillborn baby.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So I was </span>
  <em>
    <span>stolen</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Kid tried not to sound upset but it didn’t work. Death put his hands up in defense.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know the details of where your body came from, she didn’t tell me. She merely told me that you were a human body with a fragment of my soul and gave you to me without further explanation. Life is fickle like that.” Kid looked down at his feet, shifting one of them so that they sat at a symmetrical angle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Did this mean he had a mother? Was his soul entirely reaper at all? He had so many questions that he could tell his father had no answers to. He took a deep breath and raised his head. “Where can I find Life?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Death sighed and shook his head. “I do not know. Life rarely comes to the human realm, I haven’t seen her since that day. I’m sorry Kid, but I have no other answers for you.” Kid wanted to fight that, something deep within him wanted to throw a fit, but he refrained. It was clear his father was genuinely sorry and had nothing else to offer him. Getting angry wasn’t going to help anyone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I understand, thank you.” Kid stood. “I have a lot to think about.” He rounded the chair and headed towards the exit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kid.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stopped and looked over his shoulder. “Yes, dad?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kid smiled. “I love you too, dad.” He waved and continued on his way out. He watched his feet as he walked, hands in his pockets. He knew the hallways of the academy pretty well by now so he knew where he was going without looking. It was after school hours so no one was here, so that made the possibility of running into someone slim. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>There had to be </span>
  <em>
    <span>some</span>
  </em>
  <span> way of contacting Life, right? Most Gods had some kind of ritual or temple or something where you could summon them. Some were long lost, certainly, but there had at least been something at some point in time. His best bet was to check out the library first. Maybe there was something there that could help him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He changed his course from the exit to the library. Surely, there was something that could help him there. This method hadn’t failed him yet. Well, that was a lie, it had failed him a few times but more often than not it was successful. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh hey, Kid, what’re you doing here?” Kid looked up from his feet as he entered the library, spotting Maka headed his way with a handful of books. “I figured you’d be home by now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have some research I have to do,” he told her with a shrug. “What are those for?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh! Just some light reading for the weekend.” He raised a brow, eying the</span>
  <em>
    <span> stack </span>
  </em>
  <span>of books she was carrying. Light? She smiled awkwardly at his questioning stare.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, we all have our obsessions,” he said with a teasing smile. Her eyes narrowed as she blushed in embarrassment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not obsessed!” she shrieked. He waved her off with a fond smile, stepping out of her way.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course, of course. Well, I’ll let you get to your “light” reading.” The air quotes did nothing to calm her anger.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh shut up!” She huffed and stormed out of the library as Kid waved at her, heading over to the counter.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, Death the Kid, hello! What can I help you find today?” He didn’t even have to show his student ID anymore, the librarian knew him from his constant research projects.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m looking for anything and everything you have on the goddess Life.” The librarian simply nodded and went to look. Kid couldn’t help but snort a little at how used to this the man was now. It didn’t take long for him to come back with a piece of paper. “Thank you.” Kid smiled at him and went to walk away but stopped once he got a look at the list. He turned back to the librarian, confused.</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
  <span>The librarian shrugged with a sigh. “Sorry, but that’s all I could find.” Kid scowled and looked back at the single book listed. Not promising.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, I appreciate it.” Kid continued on his way to find the book. It didn’t take him long, as the librarian was very good about organizing the books exactly. He grabbed the large, ornate book from the shelf and chose a table to sit at.</span>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Gods and Goddess. A reference guide</em>
  </b>
</p><p>
  <span>Kid sighed heavily. If this was the only book they had on Life, he had a feeling his luck was going to run out very quickly. He opened the book and took a look at the table of contents, which listed various gods and goddesses. He knew most of them but there were a few he’d never heard of. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Aha! Page 364.” He flipped through the book until he found the desired page. The word Life was at the top of the page in pretty cursive letters. He took a moment to revel in the symmetrical gold and black design. “Oh, how </span>
  <em>
    <span>beautiful</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” He ran his fingers over it, delighting in the odd texture against his fingers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shook his head to clear it and started to read.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The book was of no help. All it told him was how little they know about Life, how no one had seen her in a very long time and that they had yet to find if there was any way to summon her at all. There were some ancient texts that suggested there once was but they were all very vague and gave no clear instructions, if instructions at all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He growled in frustration and slammed the book shut. “Damn it.” He replaced the book and threw out the paper. He bid the librarian goodnight before leaving</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He had so many questions that he so desperately wanted answers to but how was he ever going to find them? The only person who had ever spoken to Life that was still around was his father. Well, as far as he was aware anyway. He could rightfully assume perhaps someone like Excalibir had met her once upon a time, given how old he was, but who knew if he had and if he </span>
  <em>
    <span>had </span>
  </em>
  <span>met her getting the actual answers out of him would be like trying to do Liz’s eyebrows.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh hey, Kid, you’re home late.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hm?” Kid looked up from his feet, realizing that he had somehow walked all the way home without noticing. And he was wet. Had it been raining?</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
  <span>“Oh geez, you’re soaked. Patty, bring a towel, will ya!?”</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
  <span>“Okay, sis!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, are you okay? You look really out of it.” Liz frowned and looked him over.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My father answered my question and I now have more questions than answers,” he told her. Patty bounded over with a full sized towel. “Thank you, Patty.” He took the towel and started to dry himself off while also sliding out of his shoes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The question about your human body? What did he say?” Liz helped remove his jacket and dress shirt. Kid felt no awkwardness, he was completely comfortable with his partners. They’d lived together for years, they knew each other inside and out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Apparently, I was given to him by Life, as a gift. He said she stole a fragment of his soul and put it into a stillborn’s body.” Both girls froze, mouths wide open in shock. “Yeah, that was my response too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, wait, does this mean you have a mom?” Patty asked, all excited as she bounced on her heels.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know, though it’s possible.” Kid shrugged and headed towards his room for some dry clothes. “I tried to look up if there was a known way to contact Life, so I could ask her myself, but found nothing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh geez, I’m sorry, Kid,” Liz said as she followed him. He sighed as he walked into his room. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s alright. I’ll try something tomorrow, but right now I think I just need some food and sleep.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, okay. I’ll warm something up for you.” Liz closed the door and Kid listened to her receding footsteps for a moment. Once they faded into silence he let out another sigh and started changing into pajamas. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He decided to wear his black ones with little white skulls on them. They were the softest and had been a gift from his father, so they were his favorite ones. He only wore them for special occasions, such as movie and game nights, or that time Soul and Blackstar had slept over. Tonight wasn’t really an occasion, his birthday was tomorrow after all, but he felt his disappointment and anxiety were a good enough reason to break the rule, just this once.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He slipped his slippers on and headed for the kitchen, where he could smell the leftovers Liz had reheated for him. He smiled faintly. He really couldn’t have asked for better partners. Sure, there had been a rough few months when they’d first moved in but now they worked together so perfectly and it was wonderful. Kid loved his weapons, truly he did.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He poked his head into the kitchen, spying the leftovers sitting at the small kitchen table with a glass of milk on one side and one of water on the other. He smiled and sat down, eating his food in silence. The warm food and comfortable pajamas did make him feel a bit better. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Once he was finished he rinsed his dishes and put them in the sink. He poked his head into the dining room, where Patty was coloring and singing to herself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good night, Patty. Don’t stay up too late,” he called out to her. She grinned at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I won’t! G’night, Kid!” He smiled back at her and headed down the hall. Liz’s door was open a crack and he could hear soft music playing. He knocked lightly on the door before poking his head inside.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You headed to bed?” Liz asked as she finished pulling on her pajama shorts. Kid nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I’m going to need sleep if I’m going to continue my search tomorrow.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright. You know where I am if you need anything. G’night, Kid.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good night, Liz.” Kid closed the door to the exact spot it had been earlier before heading back to his room. He shut off the light and slid out of his slippers. He stretched as he walked over to his bed, falling straight into the middle of it. He let out a sigh as he crawled under the covers and stared at the moon through his window until his eyes drooped closed and he fell asleep.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A𝝮</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Kid felt cold water against his back, seeping into his clothes. He scowled and opened his eyes, faced with an endless black void. Startled, he sat up and looked around, seeing nothing but blackness all around him. The only thing there was him and the pool of water below him.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hello?” he called out as he got to his feet. The only answer was his echo. He started to panic a little. “Hello!?” Still no answer. “Liz? Patty? Anybody!” He listened to his echo go on and on until it faded into nothing and just the faint sound of trickling water was left.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The panic welled up in Kid’s throat and he started to run. He knew it couldn’t solve anything but the base instinct to move was too strong to resist. He called out a few more times with the same amount of luck. He screamed as his foot slipped on the water and he went tumbling forward.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Instead of hitting ground, however, he fell straight through the surface and into the pitch black waters below. He held his breath and tried desperately to swim back to the surface but no matter how much he swam he couldn’t reach it. He was running out of breath.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>His body convulsed and he sucked in water. His lungs were on fire and his head felt like it was stuffed with cotton. His body was twitching uncontrollably as he tried to make himself swim through the pain but to no avail. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>“Wake up.”</em>
  </b>
</p><p>
  <span>A𝝮</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kid’s eyes snapped open as he awoke with a scream, throwing himself up in bed. His body was so covered in sweat that for a moment he feared the dream was real but reality set in and he realized it couldn’t be. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kid!?” Patty kicked the door open, wielding Liz and looking ready to kill someone on the spot. “What happened? Why’d you scream!?” Kid sighed and wiped the sweat from his face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nothing, it’s nothing, just a bad dream, that’s all.” Patty scowled and Liz lept from her hands.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you okay, Kid? You don’t look so good,” Liz said, going over and pressing a hand to his forehead. “Well, you don’t feel warm or anything. Do you feel alright?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I feel fine.” Kid threw off the covers and stood up. “Like I said, it was just a nightmare.” The pair didn’t look so sure but clearly didn’t want to press him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, okay then. Breakfast is waiting, whenever you’re ready.” Kid watched them leave. Once the door was shut he let out a sigh and fell back onto the bed, rubbing his eyes. How had something so bizarre seemed so real? Even now that he was thinking clearly, he could still remember the sensation of falling into the water and drowning very clearly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It wasn’t real,” he told himself. Saying it out loud didn’t seem to help much. He did his best to push the dream out of his mind as he got dressed. He decided to focus back on the matter of finding Life and getting answers. Maybe he could check other libraries? Though it was unlikely that any library would have a book that the DWMA didn’t at least have a copy of, especially when it came to things such as a Goddess. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Maybe Maka had read something? Did Ragnorak know? He was pretty old after all. Kid rubbed his face and took a deep breath. He had zero leads and it was killing him. He buttoned the last button and headed to the kitchen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Happy birthday!” Kid yelped and jumped a little as he entered the kitchen, staring down at the pancakes being presented to him by Patty. There were sprinkles in them and a rainbow candle stuck exactly in the middle of the top one. Warmth welled up in his chest as he smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You</span>
  <em>
    <span> scared</span>
  </em>
  <span> me,” he said with mock offense. Patty giggled, bouncing a little.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wooorth iiit!” she said with a grin. “Blow out the candle! Blow out the candle!” Kid shook his head in amusement and blew it out, snickering when she cheered. Liz removed the candle and threw it out as Patty handed him the plate.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, girls,” he said it softly, getting him two concerned looks. He smiled at them. “I think I needed the pick me up after yesterday. The dream didn’t help either.” They nodded in understanding and headed to the table to eat their own breakfast.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh hey, Soul called and invited us to a basketball game, you wanna come with?” Liz said, sipping her water. Kid considered that a moment as he sat at the table with his pancakes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I will, yeah.” He took a sip of milk. “I’m sorry I scared you this morning.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s okay, Kid. Not like you wanted to have a nightmare!” Patty smiled at him and he smiled softly back. He started to eat his pancakes in silence, trying to calm his racing thoughts that refused to stop. He just wanted answers, that’s all. Why were they so hard to find?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hopefully a game of basketball would help clear his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A𝝮</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was a free for all and Black Star was winning by a few points, with Soul fast on his heels. Everyone had to buy a candy bar for whoever got to ten points first and they both wanted it </span>
  <em>
    <span>bad</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Kid wasn’t hardly playing, he was pretty sure he didn’t even have a single point. His mind was still racing, trying to solve his problem but to no avail. He didn’t think anyone noticed, though.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“THREE POINTS!” Black Star screeched. “That’s eleven points! I win! WHOO WHOO!” Black Star threw his arms in the air and ran in a circle around everyone, chanting his name eagerly. “I get six free candy bars! Hell yeah!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah yeah yeah, rub it in why dontchya,” Soul grumbled, holding the ball against his hip.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kid, are you alright?” Tsubaki asked quietly. Even though it was barely above a whisper it managed to get everyone’s attention, even Black Star’s. So now, everyone was looking at him. “You weren’t hardly playing the game at all.” Kid looked at them all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was sure he could trust them. Well, maybe not Black Star, he was a bit of a blabbermouth after all. Then again, what harm could this secret even do? If he did blabber about it, all anyone would know was that he was a fragment of his father’s soul, which most people already knew or assumed, and that he was a gift from Life.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sighed and sat down on the concrete. “I asked my father yesterday where I came from. All I’ve ever known is that I was made from a fragment of his own soul, but he always said that I was half human, so it didn’t really add up. He told me that I was a gift from Life, that she took a fragment of his soul and put it into a stillborn baby.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What, the fuck,” Soul said quietly. He sat down beside Kid. “Dude, that’s crazy. Does that mean you have a mom?”</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe? I’m not sure about that one myself, honestly. I tried to see if I could find a way to contact Life, ask her myself, but I found nothing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I donno if that’s such a good idea, Kid.” Maka said as she sat down, taking the ball from Soul and placing it in her lap to lean on. “I mean, what’re you gonna do once you find Life, anyway? What if she tells you about the birth mother and father or whatever? What then?” She glared at Soul as he grabbed her backpack and rummaged through it, exclaiming in victory once he found a granola bar.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have more questions than just the birth parents of the body Life used.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What kind of questions?” Soul asked through a mouthful of granola bar.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My soul, for starters. It’s blue, my father’s soul is yellow, so I’m concerned.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You could just have Stein take a look,” Maka pointed out. Kid looked down at his feet. She wasn’t wrong but he felt the need to ask Life herself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s nothing wrong about wanting to find the birth parents, y’know,” Tsubaki said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Even if that was the only reason, that would be okay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But that’s not</span>
  <em>
    <span> fair</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” Black Star shouted, stomping his foot. Everyone looked at him like he’d grown a second head. “Kid can’t have </span>
  <em>
    <span>three</span>
  </em>
  <span> parents when the rest of us don’t have </span>
  <em>
    <span>any</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey! I have</span>
  <em>
    <span> my</span>
  </em>
  <span> parents,” Maka snapped. Black Star waved her off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah but your mom isn’t around and your dad is crazy.” Maka grumbled in reply, clearly not wanting to agree with Black Star, even though he wasn’t really wrong. Kid sighed and put his chin in his hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I just want to</span>
  <em>
    <span> know</span>
  </em>
  <span>. I don’t like not knowing things.” Everyone nodded and hummed their agreement and understanding, clearly recalling how he acted when he hadn’t known what his father and the academy were up to. He had been ready to fight his father, for crying out loud.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wish we could help you, but I really have no ideas,” Maka said with a frown. “Sorry, Kid.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s alright, I appreciate you all listening to my woes.” Kid stood up, everyone following suit. “See you all tomorrow, at the party?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As if we’d miss your birthday</span>
  <em>
    <span> and</span>
  </em>
  <span> a Halloween party all in one,” Soul said with a grin. Kid smiled. He’d never really had enough friends to have a real party before. He was admittedly pretty excited about it.</span>
  <span></span><br/>
<span><br/>
</span>
  <span>“You guys better now forget my candy bars!” Black Star called as him and Tsubaki headed home. The others all grumbled their agreement and bid farewell as they parted ways.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This Life stuff is really bothering you, huh?” Liz said as they walked home, Patty singing in the background as she lagged behind. Kid shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll admit, it is getting to me. But, maybe Maka is right, maybe it’s not such a good idea.” Liz just nodded, clearly not knowing what else she could possibly say. Kid didn’t blame her, it’s not like she had something useful to add, after all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Once home Kid decided to just go straight to bed. He was emotionally drained and not really hungry after the late lunch Maka had brought for them. He changed into his usual pajamas this time, plain black with a skull that rested over his heart. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He curled up under the blankets and stared out the window. He felt so frustrated. There had to be an answer, right? There had to be some way to get in contact with Life and find the answers but it felt like no matter what he did he wasn’t going to find it and it was starting to piss him off a little. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He took a deep breath. It had only been two days, he couldn’t start getting upset already. Besides, he had a birthday party tomorrow, he shouldn’t spoil it by getting all worked up. He closed his eyes and turned over, nuzzling his face into his blankets as he fell asleep.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A𝝮</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>There was a sharp sound, like the ringing of a bell, that awoke Kid. He was staring up at the dark void again. He scowled and sat up, looking down at the water that rippled at his movement. This again? He’d never had a recurring dream before. He’d also never been aware he was dreaming, at least not to his knowledge.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hello?” No answer, though he wasn’t surprised this time. He scowled and looked around, even though he already knew there was nothing to see. What was this place?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Kid shrieked as something grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him under the water. He struggled to swim upwards but whatever it was had a good grip on him. An arm wrapped around him, claws digging into his chest as he was pulled down. The hand on the back of his shirt let go and grabbed his face, shoving down hard. A foot came up and pushed down on his chest, like he was being used as leverage.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The force of the blow made him gasp, making water flow into his lungs. Fuck, not again! He grabbed onto the person’s leg, trying to see through the water and his drowning haze. He got a glimpse of red and bright, white light. They kicked him in the face, his grip too loose to fight the pull into the depths of the water.</span>
  </em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Nowhere</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>It's the day of the party and Kid is missing. Liz is sure it's nothing, he probably just got excited. Right...?</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Liiiiiz!” Liz groaned as Patty yelled for her. If it was before nine she was going to kill her. She heard her door open. “Liz?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What, Patty?” She groaned, lifting her head to see what time it was. Well, it was 9:05, so she couldn’t really be mad.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Kid’s gone.” Liz blinked as her brain took in that information. She sighed and sat up, grabbing a hair tie and pulling her hair back.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course he is. Did he say where he was going?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nope! I went to check on him ‘cause he wasn’t getting up and he just wasn’t there.” Patty shrugged. Liz frowned. It was unlike him to not say something at all before heading out.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Did he make plans for this morning we forgot about?” Patty shook her head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Uh-uh, there’s nothing on the calendar besides the party.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sure it’s nothing. Maybe his dad called him or something,” Liz told her. “Besides, with him gone the surprises will be so much easier, right?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh yeah! Good point sis!” Patty giggled. “I’ll get started!” With that she bounced off.  Liz sighed and let her face hit the pillow, figuring she could get a few more minutes of sleep before heading out. “Are you coming?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>No such luck.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A𝝮</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liz closed the door with her foot and headed to the kitchen. She set the cake down on the table and opened it, checking to make sure it was symmetrical. There were one or two deviations but since the girls hadn’t made it themselves he should be able to overlook them. Cutting the cake would be much more tricky.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How’re the decorations coming?” she asked as she walked into the living room. The room was symmetrically decorated of course, with balloons in each corner and the streamers matching each other perfectly at each end of the room. Patty had taken a few liberties, such as changing the streamers to make a rainbow instead of going with the gold and black she’d been given.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Whaddya think, sis? I’m about to set up the snack table!” Patty said as she leapt down from the ladder. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wow, Patty, this is actually really good! The rainbows were a nice touch.” Patty grinned at the praise and rocked back on her heels. “Do you want help setting up the snack trays?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh! Yes please!” The pair set off to the kitchen. “Oh! The cake looks </span>
  <em>
    <span>so</span>
  </em>
  <span> good!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Right? I can’t wait to have some.” Liz set out the trays and grabbed the various snacks so they could set them up just the way Kid liked them. “If he says anything about this not being set up right while not being here to help, I’ll kill him.” Patty giggled even though she knew Liz wasn’t entirely joking. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They both jumped when the doorbell rang. Liz looked at the clock. It wasn’t even close to eight yet, who could that possibly be? She set down the bag of chips and went to open the door, surprised to be greeted by Maka and Soul.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, hey guys, what’re you doing here so early?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey! Thought we’d come by early to help you guys out!” Maka smiled, though Soul looked less than pleased.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh! Thank you,” Liz stepped aside to let them in. “Kid ran off this morning, so it’s just been Patty and I setting up.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where’d he run off too?” Soul asked as they took their shoes off before following Liz to the kitchen. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No idea. He just wasn’t here this morning.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s so unlike him,” Maka said as she grabbed a tray and started setting out the mini sandwiches.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, but it’s his birthday so I figured if he broke routine because he got excited, it’s allowed,” Liz replied with a shrug. She turned to Soul. “Do you mind putting ice in that ice bucket over there?” She pointed to it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sure thing.” He took the lid off and opened the freezer, taking out the ice tray and breaking it up. “He’ll be back for the party, right?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He better be or I’m gonna kick his ass,” Patty growled, making everyone freeze. Her angry voice always caught everyone off guard, even if you’d heard it a hundred times before. She grinned and giggled. “We put all this work in, he should get to enjoy it!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sure he’ll be back in time,” Liz said slowly, watching her sister arrange the chips. “He was super excited, so I don’t see why he wouldn’t be.” She finished arranging her chip tray and took it out to the table, setting it to the side.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where does this go?” Liz looked over at Soul holding the ice bucket. She pointed to the drink table.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Over there. Don’t worry about getting it right or anything, Patty and I will arrange things the way he likes.” Soul nodded and set it on the table.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How do you guys handle him being so picky all the time?” Soul asked, stuffing his hands in his pockets. Liz frowned a bit as she went to move the ice bucket in the middle of the table, shifting it around until it was just so. She got tired of people asking her that sometimes, but she understood.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t get me wrong, it can be a little frustrating sometimes, but it’s not all bad. I mean, we never have to worry about stuff being messy or anything. And besides, he respects our space, y’know? Patty’s room is a disaster but he’s never said anything about it, or my room either,” Liz said as they headed back to the kitchen. “The only time it’s really frustrating is when we’re in the middle of a fight.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I’ve noticed.” Soul snorted. “I guess if you live together long enough you get used to it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liz nodded. “Yeah, pretty much.” There was another knock on the door. “I’ll get it.” She changed course and headed for the door, opening it to see Black Star and Tsubaki with Crona in tow. “Hey guys! You’re early.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We had to stop by Professor Stein’s place to grab his gift for Kid and it was closer to your guys’ house than we thought,” Tsubaki said as they stepped inside and removed their shoes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh! Stein got him a gift?” Liz was surprised at that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yup! He called us and told us to bring it with us to the party!” Black Star said with a grin, kicking his shoes off with reckless abandon. “Where’s Kid?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not here, he ran off somewhere this morning. I’m sure he’ll be back soon, though.” Liz headed back into the kitchen. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where’d he go?” Crona asked quietly as they followed her into the kitchen. He squeaked as Soul handed him some sodas to take to the living room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No idea, he left without saying anything,” Patty said, frowning at the thought.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sure he’s fine though,” Liz added hastily. “I’m sure whatever it was he was just excited.” No one else seemed to buy that. She wasn’t either if she were being honest. She shook her head. It was fine, Kid could handle himself anyway. It was fine, she was sure of it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The door opened and she felt relief well up inside her. That must be him. She walked out of the kitchen and into the hallway, freezing when Death was the one standing in front of her. She squeaked. Death rarely left the Death Room or even the school, let alone to visit the manor.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Lord Death! I-I wasn’t expecting you!” At her announcement of his presence everyone peeked out of the kitchen in confusion and surprise. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know, Liz.” His tone was downtrodden, that wasn’t a good sign. “Have you seen Kid?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Uh, no, not since last night, why?” She felt worry well up inside her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I haven’t sensed his soul within the city since this morning.” Her stomach dropped and she could hear the others talking behind her in worried voices. “I was hoping you might know something.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, no we don’t. He didn’t even leave a note or anything.” Death’s expression dropped and he looked down.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I would greatly appreciate it if you could look for him, as I cannot leave the city.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We will!” Black Star decreed. “No way in hell am I letting him not have his first birthday party ever!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s got a point,” Soul said with a shrug. “We’ll go with, you could use the backup.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liz just nodded, unable to really say anything. Kid was missing, he’d left without saying anything. Did this have something to do with Life or the dream? Both maybe? She didn’t know but she didn’t like it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A𝝮</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The sound of cicadas and a bitter heat hit Kid like a wave as he started to wake. He groaned and pressed a hand to his forehead as his head throbbed. He slowly opened his eyes, blinking in confusion as he was met with bright sunlight and a view of the tops of trees. Everything was achey, especially his back</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kid pushed himself to sit up, rubbing his eyes a moment before opening them and looking around. He appeared to be in a patch of woods, but where? There weren’t any woods around Death City. And how had he even gotten there? He didn’t remember anything other than going to bed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hello!?” he called as he stood up with a grunt of pain. He must’ve been asleep on the ground awhile because he was very sore. “Anybody!?” He sighed when he got no answer. Figures.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He wiped the sweat from his brow and took a look at where the sun was at. Was it setting or rising? Well, given that it was still very hot that meant the sun had been up for a while heating up the air, so it was most likely setting. So, he knew which direction was which at least.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Beelzebub!” He summoned his skateboard and hopped on, flying above the trees to get a better look. He looked around in every direction, dread filling him. There was nothing but forest for as far as he could see aside from a mountain in the distance. How had he gotten here? Where</span>
  <em>
    <span> was </span>
  </em>
  <span>here? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He swallowed nervously and lowered himself down to the ground. This was bad, very bad. He took a deep breath, trying to calm down. The sun was setting so he needed to find shelter first and foremost. From what he had seen up there he didn’t have many options. The mountain might have caves but it was too far away to get there before nightfall. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His best option was to try and build a shelter. He put Beelzebub away and looked around at what he had at his disposal. There wasn’t much here, so he decided to venture to see what he could find. How had he gotten here? He shook his head at the recurring thought. He had no answers to that, he had to find some place to stay the night.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He spotted a gnarled tree with roots above the ground. Perhaps he could cover those to make a shelter? He walked over to it and had a look. There was more than enough room for him underneath the roots, so it was a good option. He started gathering fallen leaves and sticks and such to make his shelter, worrying all the way. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He wondered if the others would have noticed he wasn’t in the city. At the very least they would know something was wrong when he didn’t show up to the party, right? Oh, Liz was probably so mad at him, thinking he’d left all the party set up work to her and Patty without any notice. Did the cake turn out right? Did they know how to set up the drinks and snacks?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He whined as he kept working through the thoughts, his hands shaky. His dad had to have noticed his soul wasn’t in the city, right? There’s no way he hadn’t noticed. What if he didn’t though? What if everyone was just mad at him for leaving? DID THE CAKE TURN OUT RIGHT?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kid screeched horribly as the thoughts refused to stop. He hadn’t gathered hardly anything. He pulled at his hair with one hand and scratched at his face with the other. He had to build a shelter, damn it! He took a deep breath and smacked himself a few times.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“FOCUS!” he screamed at himself. He took another deep breath and picked up what he’d dropped. He counted the leaves and sticks as he picked them up, trying to drive the thoughts out with it. The thoughts still tugged at his mind but he managed to gather a decent amount and bring it back to the tree before collapsing on the ground from the stress.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was already getting dark, how long had he been at this? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A light from the corner of his eye caught his attention and he whipped his head around. There was a floating orb. It was just sitting there, glowing like this was perfectly normal. Kid got up and slowly went over to it. It didn’t move at all. Hesitantly, he touched it. Then screamed because it was insanely hot.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“SHIT!” he shook his hand in pain and blew on it like that was going to help. “WHY DID I DO THAT!?” He threw himself onto the ground with a groan, holding his hand that was twitching in pain. “GODS DAMN IT!” He looked down at his hand, only to find that there was no visible damage.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He stared at it a moment in bafflement before moving it closer to his face to inspect it further. Sure enough, his skin wasn’t even reddened. Well, that was certainly different. The pain was gone in a flash and his hand felt fine. He smacked it just to be sure. Yeah, it was fine.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What even,” he muttered, looking back at the orb. He jumped. There were more now, at least a dozen. They were all spread out through the trees, all different colors and sizes. Slowly he got up and backed away. Maybe if he minded his own business they would-he stopped dead as he bumped into something. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How did you get here?” The hair on the back of his neck stood up and he whipped around, stumbling back in surprise. “Careful!” He shrieked as he tripped and fell on his butt pretty hard. He looked up at the person before him, staring. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She was absolutely </span>
  <em>
    <span>beautiful. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She had long blue hair that had flowers weaved into it, going all the way down her back like a cascading waterfall. Her eyes were a deep brown that reflected all the lights that had appeared in the forest, making them glow. Her skin was a dark color, enough to blend in with the trees around her. The dress she was wearing was perfectly symmetrical, looking like it was weaved from various plants, with flowers draped over her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you alright?” she asked, reaching out a hand. Kid blinked, staring at it for a moment before his brain caught up with everything and he took it. She helped him to his feet. “Well?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh! Yes, yes I’m fine!” He smiled awkwardly, taking a respectful step back out of her personal space.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How did you find this place?” She looked concerned.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I, don’t actually know. I just woke up here.” He looked around, seeing that more orbs had appeared. He wondered what they were. He mentally smacked himself and pulled his attention back to her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I see,” she didn’t seem to believe him. “Who are you?”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
  <span>“Death the Kid.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The silence that followed his answer made him very uncomfortable. She was staring at him like he’d grown a second head. He was pretty sure he hadn’t. She slowly began to grin, then started to laugh. He scowled and watched her in utter confusion.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Did he really name you </span>
  <em>
    <span>Death the Kid</span>
  </em>
  <span>? Oh my gods, I was just kidding with that!” Okay, now he was really confused.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Who are</span>
  <em>
    <span> you?</span>
  </em>
  <span>” he asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m Life, of course,” she said it like it was obvious, like there was no way he shouldn’t know that. He found some part of him very frustrated with that assumption. “Did he not tell you about me?” Oh, well, now she sounded sad and he felt like a jerk.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, no, not really. Not until yesterday,” he admitted. He felt a little guilty throwing his dad under the bus like that. She huffed and crossed her arms. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course not. Leave it to him to keep something like that a secret your whole life.” He couldn’t help but smile a little. She wasn’t wrong, his dad was very fond of his secrets. “And you really don’t know how you got here?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not a clue, I swear.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hm, I believe you.” The roots of the tree shifted to form a bench and she sat down. “Come, sit! I haven’t seen you since you were born.” When he didn’t move she patted the spot beside her with a smile. Well, she was Life, he doubted she had any ill intentions. He sat down beside her. “There we are. Now, tell me about yourself!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Um,” he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. This must be what it’s like when kids meet extended family members they hadn’t seen since they were too little to remember them. She had good reason to be asking but he didn’t know her at all, so he felt odd. “Well, I’m a meister, for starters. I have two weapons, Liz and Patty, they’re duel pistols.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Two weapons, really? That’s really rare!” He couldn’t help but smile a little, she seemed genuinely excited to hear about it. “Out of curiosity, why them?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I need two weapons to be symmetrical.” She tilted her head, looking confused. He sighed. “It’s, a tick I have. Everything needs to be symmetrical and set up just right or I, kinda lose it. It drives Liz crazy.” He felt a bit guilty saying it out loud.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I see. So, you have OCD?” He winced a little. As much as he knew it to be true, somehow using that term unsettled him. He just nodded in response. “Ah, alright then. Do you have any other friends?” His friends, they must be worried. They’d probably worked so hard on the decorations and he was missing it.  He tried not to let the guilt consume him. The worry must have shown on his face because she frowned. “Is something wrong?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s my birthday and we were supposed to have a party, but I’ve been gone all day.” Kid sighed and rubbed his face. He felt terrible, even if it wasn’t his fault.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh! Well, then I guess we’ll have to skip the catching up and send you home!” He opened his mouth to agree when he suddenly remembered his questions.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait! I have something important to ask you.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She blinked in surprise.  “Oh, alright. What is it?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kid looked down at his feet, fidgeting a little.  “My father told me about how you gave me to him as a gift, that you placed a piece of his soul into a stillborn body. Why? And who were the parents of that body?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I see.” He looked up at her, surprised to see that she looked guilty and sad. “I’ll admit, I may have...lied to your father, just a little.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean?” Something akin to panic welled up in his throat.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll tell you how it happened, but you must promise to hold all your questions until I am finished.” Kid pursed his lips and considered that a moment. He was very bad at holding his questions but this was important. He nodded. “Very well. I didn’t steal a piece of your father’s soul, a band of humans did. I don’t know</span>
  <em>
    <span> how</span>
  </em>
  <span> they did it, but they did.” Kid was shocked to silence.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I felt a disturbance, a soul energy that shouldn’t have existed, and went to investigate it. I found a bunch of humans that had tried to mix a human and a reaper soul together in a human body. Perhaps they thought they could control it and use it as a weapon or something, I don’t know. But whatever their plan was, it backfired on them very quickly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Your reaper soul was so volatile and dangerous, you killed quite a few of them without even knowing what you were doing. You were scared and crying, I imagine possibly in pain. The human infant body wasn’t made to hold that much energy and power, after all. I increased the energy of the human part of your soul, so that the reaper half wasn’t as powerful and dangerous. You stopped killing people and I was able to calm you.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Even though you were less powerful, your reaper soul was too dangerous to let you be taken by the birth parents. So, I took you to Death, who could raise you to control and use your power for good.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kid knew she had done the right thing but he hated it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Does...Does the mother know?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not exactly. She knows you were taken and experimented on by shady doctors, but she doesn’t know if you’re dead or alive or where you would even be if you were alive.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That was somehow worse than her knowing. He put his face in his hands, trying to calm down his thoughts, which were racing again. So, he did have a mother and possibly another father. His mother was probably traumatized by losing her baby that way, who knew if trying to find her was a good idea at all. But didn’t she deserve to know? He </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> her child, after all.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can practically hear you thinking,” Life said softly. Kid took a deep breath, letting it out as a sigh. He lifted his head and looked at her. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s a lot.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It is. I’m sorry, I wish it hadn’t had to happen the way it did.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know.” He stood up, putting his hands in his pockets. “I just, need to think about what to do next.” She nodded and stood as well, the roots moving back into place. “How can I go home?”</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, I can send you home!” She smiled warmly at him. “Oh! Here, consider it a birthday gift.” He watched as she grabbed one of the smaller orbs and squashed it quickly. He blinked in confusion as she walked over with a necklace in her hand. The charm was a circled gem, the same color the orb had been. “I imagine it may come in handy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Um, thank you,” he said slowly, taking it and looking it over. He put it over his head and let it sit around his neck. It was very light. “So, um, how can you send me home?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Like this. Goodbye, Death the Kid.” He suddenly realized that he didn’t know how to find the mother, just as the thought popped into his head she pressed a finger to his forehead and suddenly he felt very drowsy, then everything went black.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A𝝮</span>
</p>
<p>
  <b>
    <em>“Did you find what you were looking for?”</em>
  </b>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“I think so? I’m not sure. It wasn’t what I expected.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <b>
    <em>“What did you expect?”</em>
  </b>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“I don’t know. Something simpler, I suppose.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <b>
    <em>“You’re Death’s son, your life was never going to be simple.”</em>
  </b>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“I wasn’t supposed to be Death’s son, though. I was supposed to just be human, like everyone else.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <b>
    <em>“But you are Death’s son, even if that’s not how you first came into the world.”</em>
  </b>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“I guess. I feel like I stole that poor mother’s son.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <b>
    <em>“No. Those awful doctors stole her son. You were an infant, what were you going to do to stop them?”</em>
  </b>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“I suppose you’re right.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <b>
    <em>“I usually am.”</em>
  </b>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>“Who are you?”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <b>
    <em>“It doesn’t matter. Go home, it’s been a long day.”</em>
  </b>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A𝝮</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kid groaned and rubbed his eyes. Trying to remember what he had been dreaming about. He froze mid-motion.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’d met Life.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He shot up as the thought struck him. He was in his room. Had he really met Life or was it a dream? His hand shot up to grab the necklace around his neck, relaxing in relief when he felt it resting there. Not a dream. He wasn’t sure if that was worse or better.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He got out of bed and changed out of his suit into casual clothing. It was dark out, so it was nighttime now. He glanced at his clock, which told him it was almost eight. So, he wasn’t too incredibly late at least. Liz was still going to be furious, though. He didn’t even want to think about Black Star being mad about the candy bar he hadn’t bought. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As he opened his bedroom door he could hear Black Star shouting something, like he was ready to fight someone. So, they hadn’t gone looking yet. Was that a good or a bad thing? He wasn’t sure. He stepped out of his room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Kid!?” Kid screeched inhumanly as his father appeared right in front of him, so close all he could see was his chest.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>WHY</span>
  </em>
  <span>!?” Was all he could think to say as he scrambled back and fell backwards  for the third time that day. Instead of falling on his butt this time though, his father caught him and pulled him into a tight hug.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, Kid! When I couldn’t sense your soul in the city I got so worried! I was just about to send your friends out looking for you!” Kid pounded on his chest and shouted into his chest until his father released him enough that he could pull back and inhale. His father tended to forget he needed to breathe.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where were you!?” Liz shouted, coming up around Death. She didn’t look very happy with him, not that he was surprised. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s, a long story.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well we got time, buddy!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now now, Liz, we don’t know the story yet,” his father scolded her. “There’s no need to get angry just yet.” Kid snorted at the ‘yet’. Liz grumbled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can I have some water, please?” Kid asked. Liz sighed and took his hand, dragging him to the kitchen. He smiled awkwardly at the others as he passed them, all of them looking very confused. Liz got him some water from their pitcher in the fridge and he downed the whole glass in record time. By the time he was done everyone was in the kitchen, gathered around and waiting for an answer.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well?” his father prompted, his hands held out palm up as if he was waiting to be handed something.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kid sighed and set the glass on the table. “I’ll start with, I don’t know what happened. I remember coming home and going to sleep after playing basketball with everyone, and then I suddenly woke up in a forest without knowing where I was or how I got there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, you didn’t like, disappear on purpose?” Patty asked. Clearly she had thought so and it had hurt her feelings. Kid still felt guilty.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, I didn’t. Like I said, I don’t know how I got there, I remember nothing between last night and arriving there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think he’s telling the truth,” Soul spoke up when he noticed Liz seeming skeptical. “I mean, it’s not something he’d lie about anyway, right?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, yeah good point,” Liz relented. She uncrossed her arms. “So, what happened? How’d you randomly show back up in the house?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well,” he hesitated, not knowing what to expect from them. “I still don’t know where that forest was but, I met Life there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay</span>
  <em>
    <span> now </span>
  </em>
  <span>he’s lyin’,” Soul said. Kid couldn’t tell if he was joking or not.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not,” he insisted. “She even gave me this.” He held up the necklace. “It</span>
  <em>
    <span> was</span>
  </em>
  <span> some, glowing orb in her forest. She made it into a necklace and gave it to me.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His father stepped forward, shrinking his hands down to a more normal size as he inspected the necklace. “Hm, no, this has Life’s signature on it, it’s definitely from her.” He released the necklace, getting rid of his hands and arms as he scootched back. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Did you get to ask her your questions?” Maka asked, looking insanely curious.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Kind of.” Kid sighed. “Dad, she didn’t take a piece of your soul. Some humans did.” His father straightened, clearly taken aback by that information. “They were trying to mix a piece of your soul with a human soul in a human body, probably to try and make a weapon or something. She’s not sure, but it wasn’t stable. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Apparently I was killing people and screaming in pain. She managed to stabilize my soul but she knew she couldn’t give me to my human parents on account of how powerful I was as a reaper. So, she gave me to you, instead.” Everyone looked so shocked, standing in silence as they took it all in.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well,” his father said slowly, getting everyone’s attention. “I wish she had told me that all those years ago.” Kid could tell he was miffed that Life hadn’t told him. “Anything else?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No,” Kid said sadly, rubbing his face. “She sent me home before I remembered to ask her who the mother was or how to find her, and I doubt I’ll get this chance ever again.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, Kid,” Liz said as she went over and put a hand on each shoulder. “I know how much you wanted to know.” He took a deep breath and shrugged.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I mean, I’m sure with the information I </span>
  <em>
    <span>do </span>
  </em>
  <span>have I can find her on my own.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll see if we have any information at the academy,” his father piped up, surprising him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Really?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course! If I didn’t, you’d run off right this second, and you have a party to attend!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kid smiled and laughed a little. “You’re right, I do. Thanks, dad.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re welcome, Kid.” He huffed as his father patted his head. “Happy Birthday.” With that his father disappeared.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re glad you’re okay,” Crona said softly, not looking him in the eye.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not!” Ragnorak shouted, whacking Corona on the head pretty hard as he started demanding snacks. Kid just shook his head. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where’s the candy bar you promised me?” Black Star demanded, getting in Kid’s face.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I uh, I didn’t buy it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“OH </span>
  <em>
    <span>COME ON</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>and that's a wrap!</p>
<p>Thanks for reading, lemme know what you think, and have a great day!</p>
<p>~Petchricor</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Relax</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Kid's father suggestions trying to relax, after the last few days and he discovers some, odd changes</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>TW: internalized homophobia, anger outbursts, slight violence</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kid tapped his pencil on his desk, watching the clock closely. Two more minutes, that’s all that was left of class. As soon as that bell rang he could go ask his father what he had found. He hadn’t heard a word Stien had been saying the whole time, his mind far more focused on finding the mother. </p><p>Stein had been trying to catch him in the act , randomly asking questions on the topic he had been teaching but Kid already knew most of the answers, so it was pretty much impossible to make him slip up. He couldn’t find it in him to really care though, he just wanted to go speak with his father. That’s all that mattered.</p><p>One minute left. </p><p>Stein was probably giving out the homework, hopefully Liz was taking notes. If not, he was sure Maka wouldn’t mind sharing hers. She knew how easily he got distracted in class, after all.</p><p>The bell rang and Kid was the first one out of his chair and heading for the door.<br/>
<br/>
“Kid!” Stein called. Kid skidded to a halt and looked at him. “I would like to-” </p><p>“Can’t, sorry, urgent meeting with my father. Goodbye!” Kid ran out the door, ignoring the professor’s calls. He could hear quite a few of his classmates laughing but he didn’t pay it any mind. All he cared about was seeing his father.</p><p>As always the door opened for him with ease. It was never locked for him unless his father was in a very important meeting. As he reached the end of the guillotine hall he slowed. His father was talking with Sid about something. As much as he wanted to interrupt and get his answers, he knew better than to do so.</p><p>“Yes, I think that will do quite nicely. Good luck!” Kid moved to the side as Sid headed for the exit. Kid bounded up to his father, relief flooding him at finally making it. “Ah, Kid! I’ve been expecting you.”</p><p>“Hm, can’t imagine why,” Kid said, tapping his chin as if in thought. He smiled when that got a chuckle out of his father.</p><p>“I’m afraid I have some bad news for you, though.” Kid’s smile dropped and he lowered his hand. That wasn’t what he’d been wanting to hear. “As it turns out, the investigation has taken me to some closed case files of the DWMA. These are files only high ranking meisters and weapons are allowed access to.” Kid opened his mouth to speak but stopped when his father raised his hand. “I know you’re my son, and that <em> does </em> grant you certain privileges, but I’m afraid these files aren’t ones I can let you have access to.”</p><p>“Why <em>not</em>!?” Kid couldn’t help but be a little frustrated. He’d wanted to help in the investigation, he wanted to find her himself. His father sighed.</p><p>“Kid, I need you to listen to me-”</p><p>“Of<em> course</em>,” Kid snapped, anger welling up from inside him. His father jolted back in surprise. “I always just have to <em>listen </em> and <em>trust </em> you. Why can’t you ever just <em> tell </em> me!?” The anger bubbled into an overflowing boil that he felt no control over.</p><p>“Kid.”</p><p>“I’m fifteen years old, I’m not a<em> child</em>!” Why was he yelling? “You don’t need to baby me!” Why couldn’t he stop?</p><p>“Kid!”</p><p>“I can do this on my own! I don’t need you to do it <em> for me</em>!” He stomped his foot on the ground and it shook beneath him from the force. He wanted to stop but no matter how hard he tried to the words kept pouring from his mouth. “You can’t just shove me out! She’s <em>my </em> mother!”</p><p><b> <em>“Kid!” </em> </b>The use of his father’s real voice silenced him. His mouth snapped shut so hard his teeth hurt. He immediately noticed they weren’t sitting right in his mouth. “Kid, your eyes are red.” </p><p>“Wh...What?” His father stepped aside so Kid could use his mirror. He stepped forward to have a look. As he approached the mirror he could see his eyes fading from red into his usual yellow. He opened his mouth to see that they had sharpened quite a bit. He watched as they shifted back to their usual shape. He turned back to his father, wondering if he looked as pale as he felt. “Dad?” </p><p>“I don’t know what that was.” His father sounded just as worried as he felt. Kid rubbed his face, shaking all over. </p><p>“D-Does it have something to do with being part reaper?” He looked at his father, not liking the way he was standing. To anyone else it may have just looked like he was standing there but to Kid, the slight bend of his body spoke volumes.</p><p>“I don’t know, but I think you should go relax.” He didn’t like that answer.</p><p>“But I want to <em>help</em>,” he insisted, trying not to let the anger come up again. His father paused a moment in thought before sighing.</p><p>“Kid, the reason I can’t let you help has nothing to do with your capabilities. It has everything to do with what the investigation is <em> about</em>.”</p><p>Kid scowled. “I, don’t understand.”</p><p>“Kid,” his father put a hand on his shoulder. “The cases I’m looking into are about doctors who stole, experimented on, and sold<em> babies</em>. The files have detailed accounts and photos that you do <em> not </em> need to see.” </p><p>Kid felt disgust churn his stomach. He nodded. “I understand. I’m, sorry I reacted like that.”</p><p>“It’s okay. But I really do think a day off would do you some good, hm? Why don’t you go home and relax some, maybe see if any of your friends want to hang out.” </p><p>“Yeah, that sounds like a good idea,” Kid said halfheartedly. He suddenly felt very drained. “Thanks, Dad.” Kid heard his father say something but it didn’t really register as he left the Death Room. This uncontrollable anger was starting to get to him more and more. He didn’t like feeling like he had no control over his actions. </p><p>When he exited the academy he looked around. Liz and Patty hadn’t waited for him, not that he was surprised. They had that spa day with Maka and Tsubaki planned, so they had probably been in a hurry. His dad had told him to relax but that didn’t feel like a remote possibility.</p><p>He might as well try though, he supposed. He summoned Beelzebub and headed home, idly greeting whoever he passed on the way. He felt so tired and numb all of a sudden, like any and all energy had been drained from him. </p><p>When he arrived home he jumped from his skateboard and put it away. He headed inside, rubbing his face as he chucked his shoes off. He found himself oddly uncaring if they were in the right spot or not. Maybe a hot bath would help? It was a good idea, at least.</p><p>Kid headed into the bathroom and turned on the tub faucet, pulling up the small lever so it would fill. He undressed and hung his clothes on the hooks by the door before grabbing a towel from the bathroom closet and hanging it out for himself, making sure it sat just so. </p><p>After a moment of consideration he went back to the closet and pulled out the bath bomb Liz had gotten him for his birthday. They weren’t really his thing, if he were honest, but this one was supposed to help you relax somehow? It might be worth a shot. He shrugged and put it in the bath, taking a moment to watch it dissolve in the water, purples and pinks swirling.</p><p>He shook his head to clear it and grabbed a lighter to light the candles he had on the counter. He rarely used them, as the scent they had was hard to find, but he felt it was called for today. He put the lighter back and turned to check on the tub. It wasn’t quite full enough. Why did tubs always take so long to fill? It was so frustrating. He sighed and sat on the toilet, watching the water fill idly.</p><p>These last few days had been taxing. First, he found out he might have a mother but the only way to find out was to find Life, which he discovered was pretty much impossible. Then he started having weird dreams. Then he somehow found Life and he didn’t even remember how he’d done it. And now apparently his eyes were turning red and his teeth got sharp when he was angry. Oh yeah, and his temper had gotten much worse.</p><p>He rubbed his face. What was happening to him?</p><p>He got up and turned off the water. He was shaking a little now. His father was right, he was probably just stressed after the last few days. That’s all it was, the teeth and eyes were probably a side effect of being part reaper he’d just never encountered before. He took a deep breath and got into the bath. It was nice and warm. The scent of the bath bomb was nice too, lilacs were his favorite. He rested his head against the tub pillow and let out a sigh, sinking into the water as much as he could.</p><p>What should he do after the bath? He could change into his special pajamas, that would be nice. The girls would be gone until later that evening, according to Liz. So, maybe he could make some popcorn and grab some stuff from their snack cupboard, watch a movie or something. His father had recommended spending time with his friends, maybe he should see if Soul or Blackstar were free.</p><p>He opened his eyes and grabbed the towel to dry his hands off before grabbing his phone and sending them both a text to see if they wanted to come over. He added that if they had Crona’s number they could invite him as well. Well, it was really Stein’s number. Crona didn’t have a phone, it made him too nervous. </p><p>He set the phone back down and sunk back into the water. It didn’t take long for him to get replies from them both. Apparently, Blackstar was already hanging out with Crona and they had plans but Soul was free and actually needed somewhere to hang out since the girls were going over to him and Maka’s place after the spa.</p><p>Kid told him to come over whenever he wanted and sunk back into his bath. He let his mind wander aimlessly, though he tried not to focus on what was stressing him. He smiled a little when he remembered how kind Life had been towards him. It was a shame she didn’t come to the mortal world more often, he had a feeling people would like her.</p><p>He opened his eyes, it felt like he’d been there awhile and Soul was probably going to be there any moment now so he might as well get out. He stood up and grabbed his towel, starting to dry off. He should grab his pajamas, he didn’t feel like wearing normal clothes right now. </p><p>He gathered his clothes up and tossed them into the hamper before wrapping his towel around himself and heading out into the hall. He froze when he came face to face with Soul, who was standing in the hallway looking rather confused. Oh yeah, he’d never told him he was in the bath.</p><p>“Uh,” Soul said dumbly, looking Kid over a moment. Kid felt a dark blush creep onto his face. Soul seemed to notice and also blushed, seeming to realize what exactly was happening. “Ah! Shit! Sorry!” He ducked his head and hurriedly headed for the living room, crying out when he ran into the doorway. “<em>FUCK </em>!”</p><p>Kid stood there for a moment from the shock before running off to his room. He locked the door behind him. Gods that was so embarrassing. Hopefully he had the towel properly covering himself. He looked down to check and sighed in relief when that was the case. </p><p>He quickly got dressed and slid into his slippers before heading out to see if Soul was okay. He’d rammed into that doorway pretty hard, after all. He poked his head into the living room to see Soul doubled over on the couch holding his head and muttering curses to himself.</p><p>“You okay?” Kid asked as he walked into the living room. Soul’s head shot up in surprise and Kid gasped. His head was bleeding pretty badly. “Oh my gods!”</p><p>“It’s fine, I’m fine! No worries!” Soul said with a crooked smile, clearly not wanting to worry him with it.</p><p>“<em>No</em>, no you’re not. Bathroom, now.” Kid went over and grabbed Soul by the arm, pulling him to his feet and dragging him to the bathroom where he kept his medical supplies. He ignored Soul’s protests the whole way. “Sit down.” He gently pushed him towards the toilet.</p><p>“Fine, <em>fine</em>. Sheesh, you’re worse than Maka.” Soul huffed and sat down. Kid grabbed a washcloth and wet it down.</p><p>“I couldn’t possibly watch a movie with you like this, the blood isn’t in the center of your forehead!” Kid joked. He smiled as Soul laughed. “Now hold still.” He grabbed Soul’s chin and started to clean the wound, wiping blood off his nose and forehead. He pulled back and noticed Soul going red. “What?”</p><p>“Nothing, nothing,” Soul mumbled, looking away. Kid scowled in confusion but shrugged it off as he set the cloth in the sink. He grabbed the antibiotic applicant and a bandaid. He tilted Soul’s head back and pushed his hair back, applying the antibiotic before carefully putting the bandaid over the cut.</p><p>“There, all done.” </p><p>“Thanks.” Soul stood up, patting his hair down and refusing to look at Kid.</p><p>Kid frowned. “Seriously, are you okay?” </p><p>“Huh? Yeah, yeah, I’m good.” Kid decided not to press him and headed out of the bathroom.</p><p>“I’m gonna make some popcorn and grab some snacks from the kitchen, coming with?” Kid asked as he already headed that way. Soul just grunted and followed him. They entered the kitchen and Kid grabbed the popcorn from the cupboard, deciding on stovetop instead of microwave for tonight. “What kind of movie do you want to watch, anyway?”</p><p>“You don’t have one in mind?” Soul opened the fridge and grabbed a soda. Kid glanced over, noticing he’d grabbed a root beer. “What do you want?”</p><p>“Coke, please. And no, not really. It was a last minute decision, to be honest with you.” He held the pot lid down as the popcorn popped inside, moving it back and forth a little to keep it from burning. </p><p>“There’s that new comedy that came out? I can’t remember what it’s called, it came out just this week, I heard it’s pretty funny.” Soul stuffed a candy bar in his mouth. Kid snorted.</p><p>“The cop one or the funny animal one?” He turned off the stove and dumped the popcorn into a large bowl, grabbing the salt and some shake on butter to put on it.</p><p>“Uh, cop one.” Soul grabbed two bowls and filled them with candy, one was completely M&amp;Ms and the other was various wrapped candies. He also grabbed himself a second drink, since he had already downed half of his.</p><p>Kid was glad the others were comfortable enough to steal his various snacks. When he’d first had them over they had been so nervous, like they weren’t sure how to act. He couldn’t blame them, he was aware he was a spoiled rich kid. He was glad to share his things with his friends though. His food, his games, even his clothes if need be. Speaking of which.</p><p>“Yeah, that sounds good. Do you want some pajamas to lounge in? I notice you’re not wearing your ‘chillaxing’ clothes.” Soul snickered at Kid using that word. He usually did whenever Kid used slang, since it was rare coming from him.</p><p>“Yeah, sure. Thanks.” Kid nodded. “Why don’t we drop this stuff off in the living room first?”</p><p>“Sounds like a plan.” They headed to the living room, setting everything down on the coffee table before heading to Kid’s room. He opened his top drawer and pulled out some pajamas. “These are a little too big for me, so they should fit you?”<br/>
<br/>
“You callin’ me fat?”</p><p>“Wha-<em>no</em>!” Kid glared at Soul as he laughed. “Just take them, you asshole!” Kid shoved the pajamas into Soul’s hands. </p><p>“Yeah yeah, I gotchya.” Soul removed his jacket, hanging it over the back of his desk chair before removing his shirt. He stopped and looked at Kid, shirt dangling off his arms. “You uh, gonna let me get dressed or what?”</p><p>Kid realized he was staring at him. “Yes! Sorry!” He walked around Soul and into the hall, closing the door behind him. He could feel that his face was bright red. He headed for the living room, smacking his face to try and force the blush away. “I’m not gay.” He winced as the word fell from his mouth.</p><p>He sat down on the couch, trying not to think about it. It wouldn’t do to have Soul come out while he was having a panic attack, they were supposed to be relaxing. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes and listening to his candles burn. He took another, making his shoulders relax. There, much better.</p><p>He heard his bedroom door open and he opened his eyes, grabbing the remote and turning the tv on. He leaned back against the couch and turned to look as Soul entered the living room. He was wearing his own t-shirt with the pajama pants, which had legs that were too long for him. Kid raised a brow and Soul sighed as he plopped down on the couch.</p><p>“You’re a skinny bitch, Kid, that shirt wasn’t gonna fit if I tried.”</p><p>“Oh, sorry.” Kid smiled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. Soul shrugged and grabbed his drink.</p><p>“No biggie, I didn’t think it would anyway, the pants are super comfy though, thanks.” Kid just nodded in response, looking up the movie and buying it for them to watch. “Hey, are you like, okay?”</p><p>Kid blinked and turned to look at him. “Yeah, why?”</p><p>“Uh, cause everything’s been off since I got here, that’s why.”</p><p>Kid scrunched his face up in confusion. “I’m sure you’re exaggerating.”</p><p>Soul shot Kid an offended look. “I’m not. First of all, your shoes were<em> thrown </em> on the <em> wrong side </em> of the door. That was my first clue something was up. Then, you came out with your pajama shirt half tucked in and still haven’t noticed.” Kid blinked and looked down, screeching when he noticed the detail and quickly fixing it.</p><p>“Why didn’t you say so earlier!?”</p><p>“To prove a point. Then, when you made the popcorn, you didn’t spend five minutes marking sure all the kernels were evenly layered over the bottom of the pan, you just tossed them in. And even now, you are somehow completely unbothered by the fact that I’m only wearing half the pajamas.”</p><p>Kid scowled. “Hey, that last one isn’t fair! You know I have some restraint when it comes to others.” </p><p>Soul put his hands up. “Okay okay, fair enough, but my other points still stand.” Kid grumbled, folding his arms and leaned back against the couch. “So, what’s wrong?”</p><p>Kid sighed and rubbed his face. “It’s just been a long few days, that’s all.” Soul hummed, clearly not convinced. After a moment Kid dropped his hands against his lap. “And my dad said that I can’t help with the investigation.”</p><p>“What? Why not!?” Kid smiled a little, touched by Soul getting upset on his behalf.</p><p>“Because he has to look into some old case files and they’re all about doctors who did experiments on babies. They all have detailed accounts and photos and, he doesn’t feel like I need to see those. I don’t disagree.” </p><p>“Hm, yeah, that is fair.” Soul relaxed again, leaning back against the couch. “Still, that sucks ass.”</p><p>Kid shrugged. “Yeah, it does. But there isn’t anything I can do about it.” </p><p>“And there’s nothing else?”</p><p>Kid remembered about his eyes and teeth. He decided not to talk about it right now and shook his head. “Nope, that’s it. Can we watch the movie now?”</p><p>“Yeah yeah, hit it.” Soul shoved a handful of M&amp;Ms into his mouth and Kid snorted. He was such a glutton sometimes. He hit the play button and leaned back against the couch, grabbing his coke and the bowl of popcorn from the coffee table. He took a deep breath and released the tension from his shoulders. He needed to relax, like his dad said. </p><p>The movie wasn’t very good but it was funny at least, which was what counted, really. It distracted Kid well enough, so it fulfilled its purpose. As a bonus, Kid got to watch Soul laugh. He tried to ignore that he felt that was a bonus, though. </p><p>“Oh geez, it’s late,” Soul mumbled as he stretched. Kid hummed and looked at the clock, it was almost seven. “I should start heading home, if I don’t the girls will talk all night and Liz and Patty may never come home.” Kid snorted. He wasn’t entirely wrong. Liz would want to head home but Patty wouldn’t and when it came down to it in those situations, Patty would win. </p><p>“Yeah, fair enough.” Kid stood up. “Why don’t you go get dressed while I put this stuff away.” </p><p>“You sure? I can help.” Soul got up ass well, stretching some more.</p><p>“Nah, I got it.” Kid started gathering up all the stuff. “You go get dressed.”</p><p>Soul shrugged. “If you say so.” Soul left the living room to go change while Kid grabbed all the bowls and took them to the kitchen. He left the sodas for now. He set the bowls on the counter, putting what little candy was left back in their bags and dumping the popcorn kernels into the trash. He rinsed out the popcorn bowl before leaving it in the sink and went to grab the sodas.</p><p>Kid blinked as he saw Soul heading his way with the sodas in hand, already dressed. “That was fast.”</p><p>“I wanted to help.” Soul gave his signature grin and handed the sodas over. Kid snorted and took them, making sure the caps were tight before putting them in the fridge. “Anything else?”</p><p>“Nope, that’s it.”</p><p>“Alright, I’m gonna head home then.” Soul headed for the door. “I’ll see ya later!”</p><p>“You bet! Bye!” Kid waved as Soul grabbed his shoes and headed out the door. Once the door shut he let out a sigh and slumped a bit. He wasn’t sure if that had really helped much. It had been a good distraction but he didn’t feel any more relaxed than he had been earlier.</p><p>He went to his bathroom, brushing his teeth thoroughly before heading to bed. He was tired and felt like sleeping early. He was sure the girls would understand. He threw himself onto his bed with a loud sigh. This sucked. He just wanted to stop feeling so horribly. </p><p>Maybe if he just hadn’t asked his father that question in the first place, none of this would have happened.</p><p>He shook his head. No no, that kind of thinking wouldn’t do him any good. Lamenting on what could have been wouldn’t change what was. He had to move forward and that was that. Even if he didn’t like it very much.</p><p>Kid turned his light off and curled up under the covers with a groan. All his muscles felt achy for some reason and suddenly he felt so tired, like he’d overworked himself somehow even though that wasn’t possible. He didn’t have much time to think about it before he was fast asleep.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>and thats all for now!</p><p>Please like, comment, and have a wonderful day!</p><p>~Petchricor</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>that's a wrap!</p><p>Thanks for reading, let me know what you think, and have a great day!</p><p>~Petchricor</p></blockquote></div></div>
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